Thursday, January 26, 2017

Sometimes the Twins really surprise me with their choices...This time Zara did very well.

Zara loves rompers and she found this one.

Photo from Pinterest.

She loved the gingham and the bow.After perusing my pattern stash she found this.

One of my many op-shop finds.The micro gingham was from my stash and as I have 10 odd metres I was quite happy to experiment.It used a lot of fabric, 3+ metres and the '2 Hour Jumpsuit' claim? Snort, think 4+ hours.

I think she looks absolutely amazing.The waist cuffs are made with pre-made bias, on the inside. I finished the cuff with a tiny double hem.The shoulder has a self casing built in and I turned a narrow hem first so the finish was clean and neat.The waist seam is extra deep and after sewing is pressed up and topstitched in place to create the waist casing.The inseam pockets are well cut and sit nicely.The sash is double sided and I hand sewed the opening for a perfect finish.I turned up a narrow and then a deeper hem and hand sewed it to continue the bespoke finish.

Now, lets discuss sizing.I love multi size patterns for my girls.Zara has a tiny waist but quite a full derrière. By drafting the XS for the top and the medium for the bottom we get a perfect fit with no pulling, drag lines or knicker plucking.

I really enjoyed sewing this romper. I like fashion patterns and love it when the Twins have an inspiration for us to work from.

Witchery shoes

As her outfit was a total stash shop she had the money spare to buy these shoes.

~Zara's Verdict~This playsuit is absolutely gorgeous. Mum did an absolute marvellous job. She really understood what I wanted. The style of the playsuit is extremely flattering for my body shape. With the fullness over my fuller sized 'derriere' as mum puts it, and the off the shoulder design showing off one of my better assets. I think that I will wear the playsuit a little bit lower on my shoulders that pictured in the photos above. It is a extremely lovely piece and I think that I will get a lot of wear out of it. Thank you Mum. xxxWell, isn't that lovely?xx N

Wednesday, January 18, 2017

This is the computer generated pattern.Not too bad at all.If I wanted a simple, slightly fitted dress this would be fine, as is.

After a lot of work by Zara...

Pinning, basting, stitching, marking.Fitting the pattern to my wonky old bod.Then unpicking it all to use it as a pattern.

Check out the different heights of those darts!

And those seriously weird bust darts!

The silk satin frays when you breathe on it so I am cutting each piece, one at a time, the silk and lace as one.I then baste all the edges together and finish with overlocking them.V e r y slowly as it stretches.

I marked the darts with a tracing wheel and then went over them with my flash Harry pen (that disappears when heat is applied) from The Drapery.These are proving a wee bit fiddly so I am basting them first and then stitching once I am happy.It is all coming along nicely.xx N

Friday, January 6, 2017

Elsa came a cropper ice skating, several years back. She badly sprained her ankle and even with a lot of physio, special shoes and strapping it was impacting her life.So, she had surgery to remove the scar tissue.Elsa thought some new pyjamas to take to hospital would be nice.

The Twins have been pinning satin pjs, on Pinterest, for a few months.Horrid stuff to sew with but they do look smart.

Can you see my mistake?I sewed these up very late at night. I did follow the instructions but the diagram showed the piping sewn one side of the front panel not both. I remember thinking 'Okay, a natty Liesl way of applying piping' and went with it.I had sewn, trimmed and top stitched before I realised that I needed piping on both sides!I was so cross at my self!

The bottoms have a lot of detail.Pockets and cuffs as well as a back yoke which makes altering through multiple sizes a lot easier too.I used a light interfacing in the cuffs.I attached my waist band from the inside, topstitching from the outside to cover the raw edges.

I drafted the shorts with a size 10 waist through to a size 14 hip.

This gave Elsa a nice fit without excessive bagginess.If things don't fit how they like they just don't get worn.

The bottoms sit slightly above the hips.

The top is a straight size 10.Elsa measures a 10 and has normal to broad shoulders and this is still quite over sized on her.I can get this top done up but would need to remove some width from the shoulder cap as it pulls on me.If you are particular about your pjs I would suggest making a top up out of practice fabric to make sure it works for you.As for the sewing, it is a good pattern, goes together nicely and, for a Big 4, quite good instructions.My mistake was my mistake.The top took me a solid 6 hours to sew, the bottoms 2 with an hour cutting time.The shifty, slippery fabric would have added to that time.

The buttons are so cute!Stylised bunny heads in a faux bone I picked up at Eliza's of Sunshine.The top slips on and off with out undoing them.

~Elsa's Verdict~Theres not much to say but 'Hello, aren't they awesome'? But we all know that question doesn't need answering. I got changed into these after my surgery not only are they comfortable and silky they look amazing. Even the nurse, that helped me, made several comments about them. Although he doesn't look too impressed in the photo, Coco loves snuggling up to them. Thanks again Mum, they're awesome, definitely want many more made. I guess I will be making more...xx N

Tuesday, January 3, 2017

That would be my sixth use of this pattern.Time to put it away, for now.

Heavy denim with a hint of spandex from Spotlight, $15/m.

Lots of top stitching, lots of tummy room.

Droopy bum lifting pocket placement.

~My Verdict~Very happy with my Vado's. I think the pattern will be quite easy to alter, as well, if my weight fluctuates.I am very tempted to try the Boyfriend jeans but I really don't need them...My capsule wardrobe is coming along very nicely.Happy New Year! xx N